Brady Tkachuk believes he’s in the mix to be selected second overall at June’s NHL Draft, and scouts agree.

Following the World Junior Championship, where the St. Louis native led all draft-eligible forwards with nine points in seven games while helping the Americans win a bronze medal, Tkachuk saw his name climb in ISS Hockey’s January rankings from third to second, leapfrogging Russian forward Andrei Svechnikov.

He remains behind Swedish defenceman Rasmus Dahlin, who is the consensus top pick for the 2018 draft in Dallas.

“Rasmus is a really good player, he’s one of the best players I’ve ever played against,” Tkachuk said. “He’s been compared to (Nicklas) Lidstrom and (Erik) Karlsson; but in the end, I think I’m right there.

“Obviously (Dahlin) is probably going to go No. 1, he’s not fooling anybody, but then second: Svechnikov, (Filip) Zadina - I think we’re all right there for it; but I mean credit to those guys, they’ve all been playing really well. The second half is really important; we’ve got to keep playing better.”

After watching Tkachuk compete at the Under-20 tournament, scouts believe the six-foot-three, 197-pound forward can be a No. 1 centre at the NHL level – it’s one of the reasons his stock rises.

“He took a step forward and I think he showed us that he could be that No. 1 centreman for an NHL team,” said Dennis MacInnis, the director of scouting at ISS Hockey. “That big, hulking centerman, they’re hard to come by. He’s going to be horrible to play against. When he physically matures, he’s a piece of work.”

The big thing for Tkachuk at the World Juniors was showing prospective NHL clubs his versatility.

“That I can play in any situation: can play 5-on-5, PK, 6-on-5 against - I’m just versatile and I just try to play my game on every shift,” Tkachuk explained. “Play that big power forward (role). Not afraid to take pucks to the net, not afraid of anybody out there. Can play physical (and) can play any position.”

Competing against Dahlin, Zadina (Czech Republic) and Svechnikov also gave Tkachuk an opportunity to measure where he needs to continue to improve as he works through his freshman season at Boston University.

The 18-year-old has four goals and 12 assists in 22 games with the Terriers this season – making him the third-leading scorer among freshman in the Hockey East Conference.

“It’s good to play those guys. We played Rasmus in the semis, Svechnikov in the quarters and to play against those guys and see how they play, and see how I play, it’s definitely good,” said Tkachuk. “You can compare (yourself) to those guys.

“Right now, second half, you try to focus on Boston, our team, and how we can get better everyday, work on my skills and get stronger everyday. Playing with confidence and getting better everyday.”

Off the ice Tkachuk says he’s looking to major in communications at Boston University joking that he’d like to be on television conducing interviews.

While he’s not in the classroom, the son of 18-year NHL veteran Keith Tkachuk and younger brother of Flames forward Matthew Tkachuk, is continually working on his consistency.

“I definitely feel like I took a couple steps (forward) at (the world juniors), but definitely have a couple more steps to reach by the end of this year," he offered. "For me, its just keep playing with confidence, keep believing in yourself and play with the puck. Give-and-gos are key - I learned that. For me, it’s just get better everyday and put bad days behind you and focus on the new ones.”

Tkachuk's brother, selected sixth overall by Calgary in 2016, went straight to the NHL and played his rookie season for the Flames in 2016-17. Though Brady says it’s hard to determine whether he’ll make the jump to the NHL next season, MacInnis believe he will.

“He’s going to be picked high enough that there’s certainly going to be pressure on him to make it (next season),” said MacInnis. “I’d always like to see the kids go back and get that extra year of development and mature a little bit more physically, but he’s a Top 3 pick for sure and those guys usually make it.”